Friday, December 22, 2006

Should I change to Vista part 1?

Microsoft is actively promoting Vista. They proudly claim that they have a package catered to every users need, be it a corporate client or a home user.But is it really a necessary upgrades ? Let's find out.

1. Security issues: Vista is all about security. Anti phishing enabled in Outlook, ie7 etc., built in spyware filter,UAC etc.

User Account Control (UAC) is all about a great concept gone wrong. UAC prompts you for necessary action whenever the state of the system is about to change, things like switching off firewall, add/remove new user etc. Its a nice idea but repetitive prompts for passwords can be really frustrating.

How secure Vista really is, only time will tell.

2. Packaging and pricing : In order to cater to the needs of everyone, Microsoft has numerous licenses and packages. You got Home, Home Premium, Ultimate, Full, upgrade..... and so on. A normal user will have to go through all the feature lists to find which one suits his work. As the price difference is a lot, package selection is crucial and cumbersome.

3. Interface : Microsoft has finally taken a leaf off Mac Os in terms of interface and usability. The Aero looks stunning and makes it fun to play around and explore the Os. The new sidebar and live thumbnails with previews look amazing.

Vista is definitely not for older PCs. Aero is resource hungry and a dedicated gfx card (128 Mb) is highly recommended. Check the vista site for the minimum requirements. If your PC is couple of years old, an upgrade is a must.

4. Improved Networking support and UIVista Network setup interface looks more polished and effecient. The wireless network interface no longer connects to networks automatically. You can set up rules, add your networks, configure which network to be autoconfigured and connected etc.The new network-sharing wizard lets you connect PC's on the fly.